Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:
The head of Russia's space agency on Saturday accused Elon Musk's SpaceX of predatory pricing for space launches, which is pushing Russia to cut its own prices. "Instead of honest competition on the market for space launches, they are lobbying for sanctions against us and use price dumping with impunity," Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin wrote on Twitter.
Rogozin, who is often outspoken on Twitter and previously engaged in online banter with Elon Musk, on Friday raised the issue during a meeting with President Vladimir Putin.
He said the Roscosmos space agency "is working to lower prices by more than 30 percent on launch services to increase our share on the international markets." "This is our answer to dumping by American companies financed by the US budget," he said. The market price of a SpaceX launch is $60 million, but NASA pays up to four times that amount, he said.
Musk responded to the criticism Saturday by saying on Twitter: "SpaceX rockets are 80% reusable, theirs are 0%. This is the actual problem."
(Score: 1, Troll) by legont on Monday April 13 2020, @05:22PM (9 children)
Yeah, even though one foreign seat would finance the whole launch, it is still cheaper then SpaceX's. Perhaps, Rogozin should offer free tickets to the station as soviets have done.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 3, Informative) by takyon on Monday April 13 2020, @05:32PM
WRONG. Crew Dragon will cost $55 million per astronaut. Boeing's Starliner will cost a little more than Soyuz, at $90 million per astronaut.
http://web.archive.org/web/20200308145723/https://www.space.com/spacex-boeing-commercial-crew-seat-prices.html [archive.org]
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(Score: 1) by khallow on Monday April 13 2020, @05:39PM (6 children)
One "foreign seat" would pay for two Falcon 9 launches.
Soviet Russia was dead and gone before ISS was started.
(Score: 1) by Sulla on Monday April 13 2020, @06:48PM (3 children)
Your point? Just because it would have been impossible for them to follow through doesn't mean they didn't do it.
If Mickey Mouse can vote, the Soviets can continue to offer free flights to the ISS
Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
(Score: 1) by khallow on Monday April 13 2020, @07:32PM
I think I'd like to have a little of what Mickey Mouse is smoking.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Monday April 13 2020, @07:37PM
Roscosmos can't afford Make-A-Wish charity launches. They will launch capitalist pigs, until SpaceX takes that business away from them. ☹
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(Score: 2) by janrinok on Wednesday April 15 2020, @12:20PM
The point he is making is that there are no 'soviets'. There are Russians, but the Soviet Union ceased to exist decades ago. You are using an outdated term in a - presumably - derogatory way for some reason or other.
The current ruling party in Russia is the United Russia party led, of course, by Putin.
(Score: 3, Informative) by legont on Monday April 13 2020, @10:36PM (1 child)
I do not follow the pricing thing, but according to this https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/11/nasa-report-finds-boeing-seat-prices-are-60-higher-than-spacex/ [arstechnica.com]
NASA will pay SpaceX $55 per seat assuming all four seats are taken all the time.
From the same source
So, yeah, Russians got greedy later but just changed their mind. Regardless, Soyuz is still cheaper, it seems.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Tuesday April 14 2020, @12:12AM
And that is the plan, except for the Demo-2 flight.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dragon_2#List_of_flights [wikipedia.org]
Keep in mind that the craft can actually seat up to 7. Soyuz-MS can do up to 3. NASA will carry cargo along with up to 4 astronauts:
Possibly tons of cargo. Payload capacity is listed as 6,000 kg to orbit.
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(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 14 2020, @12:45AM
There is no free launch.